Trash Kickers “Way Out, Somehow”

Sometimes you just see a band name and kinda know you’re going to like them. That was the case with the Trash Kickers, which immediately sound right up our street. It’s then confirmed when their bio describes their sound as ‘high octane rock’.

Okay, let’s be honest from the start, this band sound more like The Replacements than probably any other band we have ever heard. We expect they will get quite a lot of shit for that. But to be honest, we don’t really care if it means we get some brilliant music, which we certainly do with this release.

The other good thing about aping a band like The Replacements is that even within that limited scope, you can still cover quite a few musical styles. The album opens up brilliantly with “Fly or Die” which is a great scuzzy rock n roll song but also has a sweeter hit of power pop to it. So, if you fancy a Tim onwards sound with just the right level of commercial rock/pop feel, you can enjoy that one along with the likes of “Signage” and “Perfect Strangers”. Heck, this sound didn’t do Soul Asylum any harm so why shouldn’t the Trash Kickers spread some joy with it.

For those of you who like something a bit grittier and ‘punk’ then you might prefer the rawer sounds of “Come Undone” and What A Waste”. But, even with these songs there is still a feel for the importance of melody that Paul Westerberg certainly understood. A special mention for “No Danger” which with its chorus of “if there’s no danger, what’s the thrill” sounds like it could be the calling card of nearly all our favourite bands.

Speaking of the legendary Westerberg, one of the things that the Trash Kickers really do well is deliver a few slower numbers which manage to be both powerful and vulnerable at the same time. There’s the fantastic “Angel”, a duet with Elizabeth Moen, that has a country lilt to it. Maybe it’s because we have recently watched Daisy & the Six again, but this could easily feature on that soundtrack (NB we mean that as a compliment!). Whilst “Nothing Left” feels like Westerberg when he was really trying to write that pop rock hit. And as for “Wild Stab”, that’s the kind of achingly beautiful and simple song that he made a whole solo career out of.

As stated at the start, we wouldn’t be surprised if the Trash Kickers get a bit of unnecessary stick for being so similar to a clear inspiration. To be quite frank, we couldn’t care less about that (as wouldn’t The Replacements). We can’t remember the last time we enjoyed an album so much from the moment we pressed play. We absolutely adore The Replacements and would die if someone offered us the chance to hear a new album from them (especially one in the Tim onwards style). And this album is pretty close to that. It’s one of the best albums we have heard in this style for some time. So forget any thoughts of copyists and just enjoy and support a brilliant young band who could bring this sound to a whole new generation.